Public Assistance (PA) is FEMA’s largest grant program that provides reimbursement for certain work and costs associated with disaster recovery efforts. FEMA classifies work that is eligible for Public Assistance funding as either Emergency Work or Permanent Work. On September 28, 2024, a major disaster declaration was issued for Tropical Storm Helene in North Carolina, which authorized impacted local governments covered in the declaration to apply for FEMA Public Assistance for Emergency Work. The emergency declaration was amended on October 2, 2024, to include funding for Permanent Work under the Public Assistance program. (A third amendment to the declaration authorized Mecklenburg and Swain counties to apply for Public Assistance for Emergency Work).

To receive Public Assistance grant funding, eligible local governments must first register in the FEMA Grants Portal and then submit a  Request for Public Assistance (FEMA Form 90-49) within 30 days after the disaster designation. [44 C.F.R. 206.202(c)]. Units that plan to apply for Public Assistance are encouraged to attend an Applicant Briefing meeting hosted by NC Department of Emergency Management. Eligible Local governments will also want to register with the state’s Emergency Management grant system. https://emgrants.nc.gov/.

FEMA Categories of Eligible Work

As mentioned above, FEMA classifies work that is eligible for Public Assistance funding as either Emergency Work or Permanent Work. Under each classification, there are separate categories of work, as follows:

Emergency Work

• Debris Removal (Category A)
• Emergency Protective Measures (Category B)

Permanent Work

• Roads and Bridges (Category C)
• Water Control Facilities (Category D)
• Buildings and Equipment (Category E)
• Utilities (Category F)
• Parks, Recreational, Other (Category G)

Each category of work has unique eligibility and compliance requirements, which are explained in detail in the FEMA Public Assistance Program and Policy Guide. At a minimum, however, work performed under any category must meet the following requirements: (1) it must be required as a result of the declared incident; (2) it must be located within the designated disaster area; and (3) it must be the legal responsibility of the local government to undertake the work. In addition, all costs incurred for work performed must be reasonable, necessary, and adequately documented. (The Uniform Guidance, Subpart E, Cost Principles apply to Public Assistance funding.)

Emergency Work (Categories A and B)

This blog post primarily focuses on the key requirements for Emergency Work performed under Categories A and B. Emergency work must be complete within six months of the declared disaster, unless an extension is granted. Typically, FEMA will cover 75% of the eligible disaster recover costs, with the remaining 25% usually shared by the state and local government. However, for the Helene disaster, 100% of emergency-related costs will be covered for the first 180 days of the incident period.

To determine the eligibility of Emergency Work, FEMA will primarily evaluate (1) the presence of an immediate threat, and (2) legal authority to perform the work. Specifically, FEMA may request:

• Detailed description of work performed (required);
• Description of immediate threat;
• Records demonstrating the immediate threat (e.g., technical reports, safety reports, photographs).

Local governments should consider completing the FEMA Activity Log (form 214) to track recovery operations on a daily basis.

Debris Removal (Category A)

The first category of Emergency Work is debris removal. Category A debris removal activities are eligible for reimbursement under the Public Assistance program if the work performed serves a public interest—meaning the debris removal activity eliminates an immediate threat to life, public health and safety, or eliminates immediate threat of significant damage to improved property. Eligible debris removal activities may include the clearance, removal, and/or disposal of items such as trees, mud, silt, gravel, damaged buildings, and wreckage produced from the disaster.

Importantly, the local unit must have a legal responsibility to remove debris from a facility or property. Therefore, while the removal of debris from improved public property will generally be eligible under Category A, costs incurred by a unit to remove debris from private property may be ineligible for reimbursement because the private property owners (and their insurance companies) are primarily responsible for private cleanup efforts.

To be reimbursed for debris removal activities on private residential property, a local government  must take a series of steps to request approval, including submitting a written request to FEMA identifying the areas where private property debris removal activities will occur, certifying that the unit has legal authority and responsibility to remove the debris, provide the applicable source of legal authority (e.g., local ordinance or contract), and provide a statement indemnifying the United States for any claim arising from the debris removal. In addition, the unit must demonstrate that the removal was in the public interest (it cannot have only benefited a single residential property owner, for example).  Once these steps are taken, a unit may remove debris from residential property without waiting for official FEMA approval. If requesting approval for debris removal on privately owned commercial property, a local government must receive approval before undertaking debris removal efforts. If the private property is a privately-owned road, the local government is not required to request approval if the public has unrestricted access to the private road and the road is frequently used by the public. The FEMA Public Assistance Program and Policy Guide, p. 107, details the process for private property debris removal in greater detail.

Contracting for Debris Removal and Monitoring Services: Local governments may contract with private entities for debris removal services as necessary to help with cleanup efforts. Local governments are also responsible for monitoring debris removal operations to ensure removal activities are completed in accordance with contract specifications. To meet this requirement, the unit may assign an internal staff member(s) to conduct monitoring processes or enter a separate contract for monitoring services. Importantly, the same contractor or firm may not perform both the debris removal activities and contract monitoring. (Many units perform debris removal monitoring internally.)

The Uniform Guidance procurement standards, 2 C.F.R. 200, Subpart D, Sections 200.318 through .327, apply to procurements made using FEMA Public Assistance.  Therefore, local governments must bid debris removal and monitoring contracts in compliance with the Uniform Guidance procurement methods. Alternatively, a unit may enter a prepositioned contract for debris removal services or contract monitoring services. The prepositioned contracts are beneficial in that they have already been bid in full compliance with the state and federal procurement requirements. NCDPS Debris Management webpage provides resources for how to use a prepositioned contract; it also contains information and tips on how to bid debris removal and monitoring contracts in-house.

Documentation is key to ensuring full reimbursement for Category A work. FEMA personnel will review the defined scope of work of the debris removal operation, field observations, documentation, and reasonable costs. Eligible activities should be clearly documented on loading tickets and the summary of debris totals. Therefore, each day, units should maintain logs and records that show who performed removal efforts, what debris what removed, the number of hours spent on removal, where the removal took place, and the equipment used. For additional guidance on debris removal contracts and monitoring requirements, local governments can refer to the FEMA Debris Monitoring Guide and the UNC School of Government Emergency Management site.

Emergency Protective Measures (Category B)

The second category of Emergency Work includes emergency protective measures taken before, during, or after a declared incident that were necessary to (1) save lives and protect public health and safety, or (2) to protect improved property from damage. Some examples of eligible emergency protective measures include, but are not limited to, costs related to fighting flood waters, emergency access, medical care and transport, supplies, search and rescue, demolition of structures, safety barricades, and many other activities.

For work to qualify under Category B, it must take place within six months of the declared emergency and truly be undertaken to respond to the declared incident. Once the emergency or exigency subsides, work may no longer qualify for reimbursement under Category B. For example, extracting water and clearing mud from an eligible facility will only fall into category B if done during or immediately preceding the incident to protect the property from incurring imminent additional damage. However, if the same work is completed later in the recovery process, the work would likely fit into Category E (buildings and equipment). Therefore, to be reimbursed for Category B work, local governments must be able to support a claim that the work was performed in direct response to the emergency incident. This can be done by creating robust documentation confirms nature of the threat, the actions taken to address the immediate threat, who performed the actions, and the timeframe.

Procurement Considerations in Declared Emergencies: When contracting for work performed under Category A or B, local governments must keep in mind that compliance with the Uniform Guidance procurement standards is still required even though the work is considered Emergency Work. In some cases, local governments may have undertaken noncompetitive procurements because a public exigency or emergency did not permit the delay that would have resulted from a competitive solicitation process.  In such instances, local governments must maintain documentation to support the fact that the contract was necessary and in direct response to the declared emergency or exigency. Once the exigency or emergency ends, local governments are expected to procure remaining services or goods competitively.

My colleague Crista Cuccaro has published a blog on Emergency and Exigency procurement under FEMA. FEMA also provides guidance in the Procurement Disaster Assistance Team (PDAT) Field Manual. All local governments that will be expending FEMA Public Assistance funds will want to put procurement processes in place to ensure full compliance with the Uniform Guidance procurement requirements.